Dothideomycete fungi are found in a wide range of environments and include both extremophiles and plant pathogens that pose a major threat to sustainable bioenergy production. One such fungus is Baudoinia compniacensis, which can survive temperatures over 50ºC after exposure to ethanol vapor. However, nothing is known about the genes induced by ethanol or how it increases thermal tolerance. A better understanding of how pathogens cause disease and how plants defend themselves is essential to protect biofuel crops in the future, but nothing is known about transcriptional reprogramming of host-pathogen interactions in response to the kind of low or high temperatures that may become more common with climate change. To help close this knowledge gap, researchers are interested in a comparative analyses of gene expression in Dothideomycete fungi during their responses to heat and cold temperature stresses in culture and in interactions of plant pathogens with their hosts.
Proposer’s Name: Stephen B. Goodwin